Shippensburg dancers perform at Orange Bowl halftime

SHIPPENSBURG >> A Shippensburg dance group strutted its country western stuff Friday alongside country music star Dierks Bentley at the Orange Bowl in Florida.

Eight members of Dance Academy XIV danced in the halftime show of the bowl game in which Clemson University beat Ohio State. They were among about 30 groups from across the country invited to perform, according to Amanda Chestnut, owner of Dance Academy XIV.

Chestnut learned of the opportunity this summer when an organizer called based on a referral from a company that ran a competition Dance Academy XIV once attended. "We still have no idea who referred us," Chestnut said.

Whoever it was helped Chestnut's dancers get involved with some big names in the dance industry. They went down to Florida for a four-day convention ahead of the Orange Bowl, where they learned choreography from and rehearsed with Mandy Moore, the choreographer on "So You Think You Can Dance?"; Lauren Froderman, the winner of the show's seventh season; MTV choreographer Brooklyn Jai, and others.

"It will look great on their resumes in the future," Chestnut said.

The dancers learned a country jazz piece that was "fairly easy," given the large range of talent in the show, Chestnut said. The most challenging part was staying with Bentley's live performance.

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The girls were disappointed that they didn't get to meet Bentley backstage, but just knowing they were performing with a music star was huge for them, Chestnut said.

About 60,000 people watched from in the stadium, the biggest audience Dance Academy XIV has had by far, Chestnut said. Television coverage made it even bigger, though the girls were hoping for a little more individual camera time.

The eight dancers who participated account for just a fraction of Dance Academy XIV. The company could bring dancers who were age 12 or older, so Chestnut opened it up to all eligible. But the price tag on taking the trip was the determining factor for participation for most dancers, Chestnut said.